Delen Goldberg

The Sunday editor

Delen is a California native with degrees from UC Berkeley and Syracuse University. She started her journalism career in 2003 and has covered crime, courts, the environment and politics for newspapers in New York and Nevada. She joined the Sun in 2010 as a political reporter and now covers business and entertainment, while also serving as the digital editor for the Sun's business-to-business publication, Vegas Inc.

Miki Sudo is downing oysters at the Orleans. Although they’re not her favorite, Sudo grabs a half shell, raises it to her mouth, sucks out the raw oyster and swallows it whole. A few minutes later, all that remains is a stack of empty shells. A day after the oyster session, Sudo downs platefuls of pot stickers, prepping for a different competition. Last summer, she won the women’s division of Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, sucking down 34 hot dogs in 10 minutes. It’s unlikely the average diner can match Sudo, down 103 hamburgers in eight minutes like ...

While Nevada is a wedding mecca, it’s also the divorce capital of the country. For decades, it has had the highest divorce rate in America. Here's everything you need to know about getting married or getting divorced in Sin City ...

Downtown Las Vegas was transformed into a winter wonderland as penguins and icebergs took over this month’s First Friday celebration. With August notoriously one of the smallest months for turnout, organizers of the downtown art festival chose to rearrange the vendor-heavy event into a block-long Arctic-themed art installation, complete with glaciers, whales and a soundscape. The gallery stretched down Casino Center Boulevard, from California Avenue to Colorado Avenue.

The MGM Grand’s newest nightclub opens tonight after more than a year of planning and construction. The 80,000-square-foot, $100-million Hakkasan will be the world’s largest club. Planning a visit? Here’s what you should know.

It has been a busy year in Las Vegas for gun aficionados. At least half a dozen shooting ranges opened in Southern Nevada in recent months, with owners trying to capitalize on the valley’s booming gun industry. Gun ranges are a favorite destination for many tourists who are unable to shoot high-powered weapons in their own countries.

Thanksgiving turkey. Steaks on the cover of the Las Vegas Weekly. Christmas hams. Can a vegetarian get no reprieve? ‘Tis the season of eating, which for most people means heaping plates of meat and butter-drenched sides. But some of us — about 5 percent nationally — prefer to see cows lounging in fields or adorning manger scenes, not stuck to the business end of a fork.

A water park is coming to Henderson and bringing with it several first-of-its-kind slides. In all, the $23 million Cowabunga Bay Las Vegas near the Galleria Mall in Henderson will include 30 attractions.

The holiday season is fast approaching, and that means it’s time to start thinking of the perfect way to thank clients, employees and colleagues for a year of hard work. But what to give? Choosing gifts in a corporate setting can be difficult, especially when budgets are tight. That doesn’t mean presents should be overlooked. In most cases, the simple act of giving is more important than the gift itself.

Las Vegas is known for its conventions for computer geeks, fashion designers, porn stars and cowboys. This week, the Mandalay Bay Convention Center is going to the dogs. And cats. And horses, lizards and parrots.

Las Vegas is internationally known as the home of gamblers, showgirls and every variety of Elvis one can imagine. But it’s also home to some serious pests (and no, we’re not talking about the smut peddlers on the Strip). Scorpions, spiders, ants and mice all thrive here, thanks to Las Vegas’ hot summers, dry winters and rainy springs.

Las Vegas homebuilders can’t build houses fast enough these days to keep up with buyers’ demand. Yes, you read that right. The valley’s new home market is booming. Developers say they haven’t built, or sold, so many houses in years.

For most of the past decade, North Las Vegas was one of the fastest-growing cities in America. Construction crews couldn’t build houses quickly enough. New schools, parks and neighborhoods popped up seemingly overnight. Restaurants and shopping plazas overtook desert stretches, and plans were drawn for “casino alley,” a mini-Strip of gaming resorts. Most residents welcomed the growth. A 2009 survey found that half the population rated the quality of life in North Las Vegas as excellent or good. Three-quarters of residents said they’d recommend living in the city.

When the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace opened 20 years ago, the high-end shopping center introduced a new level of luxury to the Strip. Developers billed it “the shopping wonder of the world,” and at the time, it was. Nothing like it existed. Its marble walkways, designer stores and Strip-front, casino-adjacent location were all groundbreaking. Two decades later, luxury shopping is the norm on the Strip.

Visitor volume to Las Vegas is expected to grow again in 2013, marking the third straight year of increases. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority anticipates collecting 5 percent more in room tax revenue in 2013 than this year. Thursday, board members adopted a budget that includes the additional funds.

The bidders stared, ready to strike when their chosen items appeared on the block. The auctioneer shouted calls, a garbled string of words and numbers. Items streamed across the stage, waiting to find new homes. These weren’t the paintings and vases typically seen at auction. These were pickup trucks, payloaders, massive tangles of chain and rock crushers. Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, the world’s largest industrial auctioneer, brought 1,200 pieces of heavy construction equipment to auction Friday.

A highly acclaimed Las Vegas pastry chef is moving off the Strip and into the suburbs to open her own bakery cafe. Megan Romano will open the doors to Chocolate and Spice Bakery on Friday in Summerlin.

Las Vegas has been named one of the world’s top 25 vacation destinations based on ratings from users of TripAdvisor. The travel review website on Thursday released its “Traveler’s Choice Best Destinations of 2012” list. Las Vegas ranked No. 17, above Bora Bora, Los Angeles and Honolulu but below Chicago, Istanbul and Beijing. London topped the list as the world’s best destination.

Ask about the genesis of the items debuting Wednesday at the National Hardware Show, and the most common response is that necessity is the mother of invention. From rotating lawn chairs to a device that removes seeds from fruit, the majority of products unveiled at the Las Vegas Convention Center were born out of sticky situations.

O’Sheas is going out with a bang. Literally. The 23-year-old Strip staple, famous for its beer pong and low-bet tables, closed its doors at noon today. Tomorrow morning, its 7-story parking garage will be imploded.

The Panama Canal, the Eiffel Tower, Sydney Harbor and the Bellagio Fountains. All made TripAdvisor’s list of "most talked about attractions." The travel website based its picks on attractions that received the most reviews over the past year.

Get ready, get set, gorge. For the 15th year in a row, competitive eaters from across the West Coast will converge on the Strip for a chance to battle in the nation’s most prominent hot dog eating contest.

A qualifier for the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest will be held this weekend in Las Vegas, but local diners don't need to enter the event to put their stomachs to the test.

On the eve of his speech at UNLV as part of the university's Barrick Lecture Series, multimillionaire publisher and former GOP presidential candidate Steve Forbes spoke to the Sun about his predictions for the 2012 election and his outlook for the Las Vegas economy.

A new Swarovski boutique will open this week at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace. The high-end crystal company will take over 1,100 square feet and sell jewelry, home accessories and decorative items.

Oompa Loompas invaded the Strip on Thursday to welcome a new candy store to Las Vegas.IT’SUGAR — a 5,000-square-foot behemoth the owner says is the city’s largest candy store — opened in the Grand Canal Shoppes at the Venetian.

McDonald’s golden arches are going glitz. The iconic burger chain recently opened a one-of-a-kind restaurant on the Strip, across the street from CityCenter and the Cosmopolitan. The “Metro McDonald’s,” as it is called, features digital menu boards, Wi-Fi access, sleek, modern furniture and graffiti murals.

Gov. Brian Sandoval called the governors of Texas, Indiana and New Jersey his friends but said he’s ready to go head to head with them to try to lure companies to Nevada. Economic development is “a contact sport,” Sandoval said.

Don Snyder, the driving force behind the development of the Smith Center for the Performing Arts, was awarded Tuesday with a prestigious award from the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, Employers Association of Southern Nevada and Nevada Taxpayers Association.

Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman downplayed concerns Tuesday that a recent scandal involving the federal General Services Administration is hurting Las Vegas. In fact, the mayor said the spotlight focused here as a result of the investigation was helping the city.

Got a sweet tooth? Try heading out to the Las Vegas Strip. Las Vegas Boulevard is best known for its resort casinos and fancy restaurants. But more and more dessert and pastry shops are popping up. Consider it a function of the economy. “Chocolate is more of an impulse buy,” said Elizabeth Blau, a local restaurateur and founder of the restaurant consulting firm Blau and Associates.